Re:Zero Salvation
by 2Lazy4u
Summary: As he laid there bleeding to death at the hands of Elsa, Subaru made a final wish for power while lamenting at his own weakness before succumbing to a dark force. Return by Death was not the only gift he received. Will this new found power lead to him to Salvation, or drown him into despair as a pawn to this mysterious dark force? (Stronger/Darker Subaru)
1. The Gift

It had barely been a day since Subaru arrived to this new world. Bored of his old life and thrown into a new one. Nothing more excited him than the present.

Then, he met her.

A kind hearted half-elf whose silver hair fluttered beautifully when she walked.

To him, it was perhaps love at first sight, in which later turned to devotion.

For hours he had been trying to assist her in finding an important insignia which previously has been stolen by a nimble pickpocketer. She did not at first understand why the young man with such strange attire and jet black hair wanted to help at first, but nonetheless accepted his help as she felt he was genuine.

…

Subaru reminiscenced the last few hours of his life as he was lying in a pool of his own blood and guts with her by his side dying as well. His vision was fading… he tried to reach for her hands but couldn't find the strength as the last bit of blood left his body. 'I promise.. I will save you…'

"Such wonderful colors… your guts have…", the sadistic woman known as Elsa, the bowel hunter, said obviously getting off from this.

…

'If I weren't so weak…' Subaru cursed himself as made his final thought before fading into darkness.

...

'Open up your heart to me, and power you shall receive...' a mysterious voice spoke as Subaru faded away into darkness, not caring for the new voice.

...

'Fine...'

* * *

Subaru suddenly opened his eyes.

He found himself standing on some sort of large Pillar with an intricately designed picture as the floor he stood on. The graceful sleeping form of the half-elf girl, plastered on the floor's image.

Instinctively, he checked his body and found no wounds. In fact, he remembered specifically that he died a gruesome death by disembowelment and not a single fatal injury was present.

"Wh-where am I?" Subaru said to no one in particular.

' _Your heart.'_

"Who said that? Who are you? What's going on?!" Subaru said beginning to panic.

' _So much to do, so little time… Take your time.. Don't be afraid..'_

Subaru calmed himself but was still a bit on edge. Was he perhaps given a second chance?

' _Now, Step forward'_

Subaru listened, as he hesitantly but slowly began to step forward to the center of the pillar.

Small stone pedestals began to appear in a flash of light.

' _Power sleeps within you… if you give it form… it will give you strength'._

The stone pedestals presented three objects to Subaru. A sword, a staff like wand, and a shield.

' _Choose well'._

Snapping from his stupor, Subaru decided to scope out his options. He started with the sword.

' _The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction'._

Subaru moved onto the shield.

' _The power of the guardian. Kindness to aid friends. A shield to repel all.'_

Subaru moved onto the last object.

' _The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin'._

…

Subaru thought hard on this as he compared this situation to an JRPG from back home. A rather most unorthodox method to decide things on.

…

He wished he was strong enough to protect the ones he cared of most, as his thoughts drifted to Emilia.

Subaru picked the sword. It disappeared in a flash of light.

' _Your path is set. Now, what will you give up in exchange?'_

Subaru was quick on this decision as his answers pertained to protecting the ones he cared for. He would give up the power of the mystic, as the staff disappeared from view.

'Is this the form you choose?'

Subaru confidently nodded.

The ground shook as the pedestals collapsed and disappeared. The floor began to crumble away as Subaru was stuck dead center of all of it.

He felt his body go weightless as he began to fall into the dark abyss. However, another pedestal began to appear from the distances as he began to slowly start floating down to it, negating his fall.

His feet finally met with the new floor as he finally settled down for whatever is coming next.

The sword reappeared in his hands.

'You have gained the power to fight. Use this power to protect yourself and others.'

Subaru stared at the blade. It looks rather plain in his opinion but he didn't complain.

'There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong'.

Dark matter began to spring from the ground, as if they were shadows coming to life. Subaru readied himself.

The dark figures resembled ants that grew claws and legs. They hardly looked that menacing but nonetheless, Subaru did not want to become careless again.

Subaru charged at the strange small monsters. He began with lunges and slashes killing each one of the with a few hits on each.

Having never picked up a sword in his life, Subaru thought he was doing pretty well. These movements felt familiar as his body was able to execute them perfectly for some odd reason.

The final threat disappeared at Subaru landed the finish blow on it, satisfied with his work.

The ground shook again. But this time a pool of darkness began to swallow him.

Subaru felt helpless as he sunk into the murky cold dark pit as he struggled with all his might to get out to no avail.

As quick as it came, it dissipated as Subaru found himself flailing around on a new floor, but this time with the picture of half-elf girl again, or so he thought. This time she wore a dress made of all black.

He got onto his feet and saw a huge door. 'A way out?' he thought approaching it.

He stopped in front of it, admiring its huge size. It opened.

Light began to shine through as if it was looking at the sun.

Slowly Subaru began to walk into the light, seeing no other place to go.

Subaru winced as his vision reverted to normal and realized he was on another pillar. But this time, it had a cracked picture of a young man with silver hair, tanned skin, a lean body, and menacing yellow eyes wearing a robe of darkness.

'You are prideful. You wish to bring happiness to yourself and others. You are scared of failure.'

Subaru was shocked to hear this perfect description of himself.

'Your journey is set'.

The world began to crumble once more.

'Remember: The closer you come to light, the stronger your shadow gets. But do not be afraid. For you wield the mightiest weapon of them all.'

Subaru felt lightness in his body as he began to fall again, but not before catching sight of a familiar cloaked figure in black with silver ornamental strings along its hood.

'Do not forget. You are her beloved.'

Everything turned black once more.

…

* * *

"Hey boy, are you gonna buy something or what?"

Subaru snapped into reality as if he just woke up from a daze.

He was back at the appa stand, plastic bag of groceries in hand.

...

Subaru slapped himself in the face twice. He felt a stinging pain.

...

He was alive again.

'How is this possible?' he thought. 'Am I still dreaming?'

Subaru normally would be slow to respond to such a shock but after that strange dream, he oddly felt more level headed and wiser. This wasn't like him.

Subaru responded. "Have we.. met before?"

"Never seen ya in my life buddy. Now ya gonna buy something? If not, stop actin' weird and get outta my sight", the large man waved his hand as if he was shooing away Subaru.

Subaru obliged and left the stand. Moments later a flash of yellow whizzed by him as he felt the bags from his hands get snatched while he was caught off guard.

"Stop! Thief!" A familiar voice filled his ears. It was half-elf girl, alive and well.

Subaru stopped and thought hard. 'Did I somehow resurrect myself and come back into the past?'

Subaru shook himself out of his stupor. He saw her heading towards his direction.

If Subaru was going to have a do over on all the events that had happened, he decided to make a good first impression. Very uncharacteristic of him at first thought. This was a second chance he did not want to waste.

The girl walked down the street, troubled and seeming rather focused as she apparently lost her target. Subaru remembered her mentioning something important of hers was stolen. Her insignia he believed.

"Yo", greeted Subaru as he approached the half-elf.

"Hm? Do… I know you? She asked.

Subaru shook his head. "N-no. It's just that I happened to catch a glimpse of the thief who snatched whatever from you", he said. "We can perhaps work together to find this culprit".

Emilia waved her hands in protest. "Oh no no.. you don't have to do that for me", she said.

"Well coincidentally, it happens so that the thief in question also took something of mine and I too would like to get it back", said Subaru smoothly.

"Hmmm…" Emilia paused to think. A small cat appeared from out her hair.

"I think he's trustworthy Lia", the talking magical feline known as Puck said feeling no ill intent from Subaru. "If not, you haven't a thing to worry about since I got your back", the cat reassured.

Emilia sighed. "Alright fine, since you say so Puck. We can work together to get back what was stolen from us".

Subaru smiled. He tried his best to emulate the last timeline. "The name's Subaru. Natsuki Subaru", he said, introducing himself.

"I'm simply known as Emilia", she said, introducing herself as well.

'So that's her name…' Subaru smiled as they began their search for the culprit once more.

However, something was tugging at his brain to initially begin to search.

His thoughts pulled towards the slums where he last died in the previous loop…

Though he grimaced at the thought of going there again, he just couldn't shake the feeling.

This was something he would've never thought about in such short amount of time.

"I think I may have a lead to where our culprit is", announced Subaru as Emilia stood at attention.

"Really?" she asked.

Subaru nodded. "I don't want to be stereotypical but I believe we should search the slums first since we all know that is the hangout of all criminals and bad activity alike. And if I were to hide from someone, it'd be the slums".

Puck was the first to speak up. "I guess he does have a point there Lia".

Emilia nodded in agreement. "Very well. Let's go there together then," as the pair made their way to the slum areas.

About thirty minutes of walking later was when they finally reached their intended destination.

In their view was the previous location of both their deaths. Subaru felt nervous but shrugged away any fears. He had to do this.

"Remember, be on your guard you two… anything can happen here," Subaru said as Emilia nodded.

The pair approached the door of the building and gave a knock.

Heavy footsteps could be heard from the other side.

The door opened to reveal a giant man in a green vest and tattered pants, eating something.

"Whaddya want?" he asked mouthful of food.

Emilia was quick to speak up before Subaru.

"We wanted to know if you've seen a short girl with blonde hair and a long red scarf," she said rather quickly.

'Poor Emilia', Subaru thought. 'Scum usually tend to stick with other scum unless there was incentive involved. They won't easily rat out their own'.

"Nope. Now get outta here," the Giant went back inside and slammed the door in pair's faces.

Subaru stared at the door while the now confused Emilia was still processing what happened.

"She's in there," he proclaimed.

"How do you know?" Emilia asked.

"I can smell the snacks I bought earlier from his breath," Subaru smugly said while Puck appeared and applauded him for his critical observation.

"Puck was it? Can you blow open this door?" asked Subaru.

"Easy," the cat said as it created a heavy Ice shard that crashed through the door, effectively blow it off its hinges.

"What the-!?" the giant reeled in surprise. "Looks like they found out, Felt".

Subaru took note of the culprit's name and was surprised it was a little girl.

The pair walked in to see snacks strewn across the table and the thief in question sitting across from the giant.

"You!" Emilia exclaimed, pointing at the culprit. "Please! I need what you stole from me back! It's very important to me!"

"No way! I stole it fair and square!" she retorted, defending her own actions immaturely.

An argument broke out between the two as Subaru chuckled. He tried to negotiate instead.

"Ahh geez. And to think we were going to even pay a hefty price for the return of that specific item", he said making the two stop fighting to listen.

"Tough break pal! I already have a customer coming over to offer a price," the little girl said. "You're just gonna have to wait until she gets here so you both can negotiate."

"Oh my we are having quite the get together in here I see", a new voice entered the room. A woman clad in a purple and black dress with a small overcoat.

Subaru's eyes widen. 'It was her?!' he thought. They were all in danger.

Elsa, the bowel hunter, has entered the scene, smiling devilishly.

She caught sight of Emilia. Her eyes narrowed as she smiled.

"Sorry to say but, you'll all be dying today…" she said pulling out her infamous blade.

However, ice shards began to rain down on her as he side swept and dodged them all.

She looked up and saw Puck, floating in the air with more ice shards behind him.

"Ah.. you must be a spirit user then…" Elsa said now being wary of the spirit.

"Compared to me, you are just a novice", Puck proclaimed as he rain down more icicles down to Elsa as it eventually encased her entirely but exploded outwards as Elsa remained untouched. Though she was now missing her overcoat.

"RARRRGHH!" The giant roared as he brought out his giant wooden club, swinging wildly at Elsa. "You have some nerve lady!"

Despite his strength and tenacity, Elsa dodged and weaved through every attack with elegance and grace as she delivered a fatal counter strike with her blade to the giant's artery.

The giant fell as the weight of his collapse reverberated through the building.

"Old man Rom!" Felt screamed, watching one of the few people she cared about fall, dead silent.

She was going to fight as well until a pair of hands gripped onto her shoulders and turned her around. It was Subaru.

"Felt… When you find an opening, I want you to run away from here as fast as you can and get help! Do you understand me?" Subaru said shaking the girl to her senses.

She nodded hesitantly as she readied herself as she saw Elsa busy avoiding more ice shards. She had to do this for Old man Rom.

'Now!' She thought as she activated her Divine wind blessing, increasing her speed ten fold. She darted towards the door.

"Leaving so soon?" Elsa said as she weaved towards felt with great speed. Felt wasn't going to make it at this rate… Until…

!

Elsa saw as Subaru blocked her strike, intended for the small girl with the giant wooden club the fallen giant used.

Felt had made it out through the door, exiting the present danger.

"Oh darn… missed one", Elsa said. "I guess I should wrap things up here before reinforcements arrive, assuming the little girl didn't abandon you," Elsa smiled once more.

It was already sunset.

Puck yawned as he began to feel tired. "Sorry Lia, I'm at my limit here," he said discontinuing his barrage of icicles at the Bowel hunter. "You rest now Puck..." Emilia said to her spirit ally. "Yes. Yes. Just remember, if anything happens to you, I will proceed with our contract," the spirit finally disappeared into Emilia's Gem.

Subaru stood side to side with Emilia. He didn't know if both him and Emilia could take her on without Puck. He readed the wooden club once more as he charged Elsa, swinging the heavy weapon wildly. She kicked him to the side, sending him crashing into the wall.

"I admit you have spirit and courage but your technique is rather rigid and lacking," Elsa said as she now charged at Emilia who then made an Ice shield. She could only defend as Elsa continued her flurry of strikes, slowly chipping away at the ice shield.

' _You have the power to fight'._

"That voice…" Subaru whispered to himself… It wasn't a crazy dream after all.

 _'You wield the mightiest weapon of them all,'_ it said.

Subaru remembered his vows from his previous death. He would protect her.

' _Keyblade.'_

Elsa finally shattered the ice shield Emilia conjured watched helplessly as the dark blade of the bowel hunter come down on her.

!

Emilia saw a figure jump in between her and Elsa. It was Subaru.

Strange voices filled Subaru's head, as if telling him what to do, what to feel.

"Reflect."

A flash of light engulfed the small area the three were in. Elsa felt her blade come to a halt against a hard object. She jumped back a good distance.

"Ohh wow. I had no idea you could do that boy. I guess I underestimated you slightly", the bowel hunter admitted as a magical clear barrier surrounded both Subaru and Emilia, only to disappear a few seconds later.

In his hand, a white silver object appeared. It was odd but strangely beautiful to look at as the intricate design on the weapon accentuated its beauty. He could not help but marvel at the weapon at hand as well.

' _Oathkeeper'._

The strange voice said in his head. He assumed it was the weapons name. How fitting for the situation he thought.

Elsa cracked her neck. "Entertain me some more please," she said, licking her lips.

She darted towards them once more.

Subaru casts reflect once more as she struck the barrier with her blades.

"Shatter!" Subaru commanded his barrier as its individual panels exploded outward, repelling their attacker. Glass like shrapnel embedded themselves into Elsa as she covered her vitals.

"My, My… So full of surprises today.." Elsa commented, with some blood running down her arms. More Ice shards rained down as Elsa swatted some aside with her blade.

"I-I'm still here you know!"said Emilia who was ready to go on the offensive again. "Thank you for the assist," she said appreciatively Subaru.

Subaru nodded in acknowledgement as he turned his focus to face Elsa once more. He knew he couldn't depend entirely on Felt to return with help. He needed to think on how to win against a monster like her.

'Impossible,' a familiar male sounding voice spoke in his head. 'You are still a novice compared to her.'

Subaru wasn't surprised by any new voices at this rate but grimaced knowing the voice was right. The gap in skill between him and Elsa was way too much. Maybe with Emilia by his side, he stood only at a smaller chance of winning this outcome.

"I'm going to get serious now…" Elsa licked her lips once more. "Get ready, resist all you can… it only makes it more pleasurable for me".

Immediately Subaru darted towards her with Oathkeeper raised high to begin to strike her. Familiar movements and maneuvers ran through his mind as he tried to execute them. He swung his keyblade against Elsa's Northern style blades as he maneuvered from her strikes, barely avoiding them. His body however couldn't move the way he wanted to as the new techniques that entered his mind were lessened to a degree.

He was getting tired. Using magic for the first time in his life and initiating in hand to hand combat was perhaps not a good combo for a novice like him.

Subaru felt a kick delivered to his gut by Elsa easily overwhelmed him as he slammed into the wall behind him, the keyblade was knocked out of hand as it flung itself into the air only to be caught by Elsa.

"Shit…." Subaru cursed as he tried to stand back up but failed due to the pain.

The voice in his head spoke once more. It beckoned him to do as it wanted.

"Heal…" Subaru grunted as a light green aura was casted on himself. The pain subsided, but he felt drained.

Elsa examined the keyblade. "What a strange and marvelous weapon…" she complimented, never seeing anything like it. "Guess I'll kill you and keep it for myself," as she brought up the keyblade, ready to strike Subaru. A sudden flash of light engulfed the keyblade as it disappeared from Elsa's grasps and reappeared in Subaru's.

'It seems keyblades are picky of their owners…' Subaru thought as he finally regained enough energy and willpower to stand and swung at Elsa. She was caught off guard but Subaru was still too slow in his attack as she simply moved aside and dodged it as Subaru tripped and fell.

"That should be enough of that…" A new voice entered the scene.

A red haired royal knight, who looked slightly older than Subaru, stood nearby.

Elsa seemed to have completely dismiss Subaru as a major threat and was fixated on the knight as she smiled.

"Oh my… to think I would have the honor to clash blades with the famous sword saint lineage. Reinhard Van Astrea." Elsa said readying herself. She charged.

Subaru sighed in relief. "I think we're saved…" as he witnessed every attack made by Elsa was repelled easily by the red haired sword saint. Subaru made it to the sidelines with Emilia who was already trying to heal a bleeding Rom.

"Careful. She's quite a monster.." Subaru warned the knight.

Reinhard smiled. "Not to worry, it just so happens that monsters are my specialty," as he wielded a random sword from the floor and clashed with Elsa who failed to even get the upper hand on him.

Subaru knelt down next to Emilia as he watched her healing the giant.

"Why would you help the person who was part of the gang who stole your insignia?" he asked.

"So that I can know the reason why obviously. He can't lie to the person who saved his life can he?" she replied. The wound finally closed up. "Please tell Reinhard he can finish this now".

Subaru was a little confused but obliged anyways. "Hey Reinhard, you can kick her ass now!"

Reinhard smiled as he finally raised his sword high, all the mana in the air siphoning towards him. He was going to unleash something big.

Reinhard swung his blade down as a blinding blue light engulfed the area resulting in a loud explosion.

...

The damage was massive and Elsa was nowhere to be seen. Rubble still falling from the sky.

'Talk about collateral damage,' Subaru thought as he prospected Reinhard's work. He was crazy strong he thought as he dusted off his jacket.

Just the group began to settle, a figure bursts from the rubble towards Emilia.

It was Elsa, albeit slightly roughed up and blood running down her face. She was determined to get the last strike on her target before Reinhard can do anything about it.

Her brows quickly furrowed as she clicked her tongue as she saw Subaru once again jumping in between them as he blocked her final strike his keyblade.

Subaru raised his weapon and pointed it in her general direction. More familiar feelings surged through his mind.

'Fire!' Subaru thought as he casted multiple fireballs and launched them towards Elsa, once again catching her off guard but not enough to kill her. Elsa swatted away the flames with her blade resulting in some minor burns to her right arm. She jumped back onto a tall pile of rubble leading to the roof.

"Unfortunately I have to go now. But know this, I will come back to finish the job one day," she warned before disappearing into the now night sky.

Subaru found it odd that the knight had no intention in catching her but dismissed those thoughts as he turned his attention back to Emilia who was now approaching him.

"Subaru, I can't thank you enough for your kindness today," she said with gratitude towards the young man.

Subaru smiled as he simply gave a thumbs up. He felt a bit woozy to be honest.

Reinhard approached the two with Felt following behind him. "Well I'm glad things worked out for the better here," he said.

"Yeah! Subaru Nii-chan was so awesome!" Felt exclaimed, surprised by the young man. "For a simple and weak nobody, you actually held off a renowned killer," she praised Subaru.

Subaru scratched his head. "Well I suppose I did okay, that was the first time in my life I ever had to fight someone seriously," he admitted.

Reinhard eyed the weapon at Subaru's side, admiring its oddity and beauty.

"That's quite an interesting weapon you got there Subaru, mind if I can take a look at it?" Reinhard asked as Subaru shrugged and obliged, handing over the keyblade to the red-haired knight.

Reinhard quickly studied it and found the weapon surprisingly well balanced as it resembled more like a key than an actual sword. He felt great power from the weapon. Its power similar to his famed blade, Dragon Raid. He was genuinely surprised, having never known a weapon that can possibly rival his own. However, the examination soon came to an end as the blade disappeared in a flash of light and reappeared in Subaru's hands.

Reinhard laughed in surprise. "I suppose there's more than meets the eye when it comes to you Subaru, was it? To think there existed a weapon other than mine that chooses its wielder."

Felt approached Emilia. "I suppose I should give this back to you since you saved Old man Rom," she said, taking out the Insignia which glowed in her hand.

Reinhard's eyes widened. There was no mistaking it he thought, as he examined her prominent features and the glowing insignia. She was one of them.

"I'm sorry young lady but you must come with me," he said as he knocked out Felt before she could protest and threw her over his shoulder.

Subaru was about to intervene but quickly stumbled and fell to the floor. He was suddenly and completely exhausted. His mind started to drift into the darkness as the last thing he saw was Emilia rushing to his side.

...

Reinhard stood over Subaru. "If you would like, I can possibly-"

Emilia interrupted him. "No No. He helped me a lot today so it is only right that I should repay my debt to him," Emilia said looking at the boy who made a huge difference today.

* * *

Natsuki Subaru: Abilties:

Cure- Basic level healing spell.

Fire- Basic level fire spell.

Barrier- A spell that conjures a strong and durable magical shield dome.

Basic H2H- Basic hand to hand combat skills.


	2. The Request

Out there, somewhere beyond the stars, is an island. It was home to a young man who yearned to escape his confinement.

"This world is just too small..."

* * *

"Have you heard of the ancient Keyblade War?" the young man asked another young man with black hair, tied back in a wild top knot.

...

"Never heard of it."

* * *

"Darkness is a beginning, you see, not an end. At birth, everyone of is emerges from the darkness into a world of light, do we not?"

* * *

"Darkness cannot be destroyed. It can only be channeled."

* * *

"THIS WASN'T PART THE DEAL YOU OLD COOT!" a man with an eye patch and scar on his face yelled in anger with a surfer accent.

* * *

"Eraqus knows it too. He knows exactly what your are. Haven't you wondered? Why he never granted you permission to leave his side, to grow stronger?"

* * *

"Why do you trouble yourself with remorse, Master Terra? The man was bent on doing harm to your friend, his own pupil!"

* * *

"Behold. These lifeless keys used to be full of power - united with the hearts of their masters. On this barren soil, Keyblades of light and darkness were locked in combat... As a great Keyblade War raged. Countless Keyblade Wielders gave up their lives, all in search of one, ultimate key. And it will soon belong to me… X-Blade."

* * *

"Aaaaaargh!" Subaru screamed as he rose from his bed out of shock, shaking in confusion. His fists tightened as he noticed he was gripping the fabrics on the bed he was on very hard.

'Those dreams…' he thought. 'They're way too damn vivid and realistic…'

Subaru was overloaded with all these new found memories that he was sure were not his. It felt like an eternity living through them in the eyes of some else he thought. He had seen some horrible things. What started out as ambition in the beginning grew into something more sinister.

Whoever that was… or whatever it was… that person was bad news…

Subaru took a deep breath in and calmed himself. 'They're just dreams,' he thought. 'Nightmares.'

Subaru looked up and scanned the current room he was in. It seemed like a somewhat luxurious hotel room from his perspective. He finally noticed two twins who huddled together in confusion watching his panic attack. Their outfits were rather interesting, he thought as they resembled a maids uniform. "Meido?" he asked himself.

The two girls looked at each other, then back at him.

"Rem, Rem. Our honored guest is looking at us quite pervertedly," the pink-haired maid said.

"Nee-Sama, Nee-Sama, perhaps he is one of those eccentric types?" the blue-haired one said in response.

'Honored Guest my ass!' Subaru thought. 'Having quick judgements on me already!'

Subaru collected himself.

"Umm.. excuse me but.. Where am I exactly?"

The maids straightened themselves. "You are currently an honored Guest at the Roswaal Mansion by the request of Emilia-Sama and the Sage council.

"Emilia? You know her?... Wait. Wait, hold on. Sage Council? That sounds too important for involving someone like me and I've never heard of them before!" Subaru exclaimed in confusion. He last remembered the battle against Elsa with Reinhard saving his and Emilia's lives in the process. What happened since then?

"Ah Subaru. You are finally awake," a new voice entered the room as the maids bowed their heads in honor of the newcomer.

It was Reinhard himself standing at the door entrance to the room.

"Reinhard..?" Subaru asked subconsciously.

"Emilia told me all about you and your past actions. Are you perhaps supporting her candidacy for Heir to the throne?" the red-haired knight asked.

"Candidacy?" Subaru said unknowingly. "Hold on, I need to collect myself here… First off, how long have I been out?"

The pink-haired maid bluntly answered, "An entire day."

Subaru's eye widened in surprise.

"Let me guess, a lot has transpired in the past 24-hours?" he asked in which Reinhard nodded.

"Allow me to explain."

* * *

 _Two days earlier:_

Reinhard had just departed as he witnessed a pink haired maid accompany Emilia while carrying an unconscious Subaru and loading him into a dragon carriage.

Reinhard couldn't keep his mind off that strange weapon the boy wielded. He felt as if he has seen it somewhere before in his life. A book maybe? Old legends? His family library was full of tomes and he couldn't possibly look through all of it and attend to Felt. He decided to consult the Sage council.

* * *

 _Very Early In the Morning:_

Reinhard had made it to his Family Mansion with Felt in tow as he put her in the care of very Capable guardians and Maids to tend to her every need. She protested at first but soon succumbed to the luxuries of the mansion somewhat.

Reinhard had just sent a courier to send a message to the Sage council, requesting their audience. There was no way they can decline the Sword Saint.

* * *

 _A few hours later:_

In the royal meeting room inside the Royal castle, members of the Sage Council gathered, disgruntled obviously from being called this early in the morning, by the sword saint nonetheless.

The sage council was revered to be one of the wisest men in their times and had connections to the royals and hence gained their position. Since the passing of the royal family, they now run the Kingdom of Lugnica and has declared Martial Law since then.

All were present and accounted for as Reinhard entered the room.

"Reinhard Van Astrea…" the elderly man with thick green eyebrows said. "What manner of topic you wish to speak with us about? You described it as something important."

Reinhard answered. "Yes, it is."

"Last night, I encountered the notorious Bowel-hunter named Elsa Granhiert."

One councilman scoffed. "You bothered us for a vampire like her? This complaint fits more for captain of the local garrison or the captain of the knights!" he said distastefully.

"That's not all," Reinhard retorted. "Battling the infamous killer was a boy, a little younger than myself-"

"My condolences to him then," the same councilman said coldly. "If that is all you have to say then-"

Reinhard was getting annoyed by the man's constant interruptions. "Wait. I'll get to the point," Reinhard said stopping the man from leaving. The councilman grunted as he took his seat once more.

"He had a weapon, never of which I have ever seen. A great and mysterious power radiated from it. It may rival my sword, Dragon Raid."

At this, the Sage Council's jaws dropped. This was completely unheard of.

"What did it look like?" the only councilman who kept his cool demeanor asked.

A nearby servant fetched some papyrus and an ink quill for Reinhard.

Luckily for them, Reinhard had a blessing that allowed his sketches/drawing to look like photographs themselves. He drew a complete replica of _Oathkeeper_ as he handed the completed drawing back to the servant who then presented it to the representative of the Council. They all looked at the picture.

"This is….!" the same councilman stammered. The others did the same when they realized what it was.

"Reinhard, at the Sage Council's Urgent request, please bring this young man to us at once!"

"For what reason?" he asked. "This still doesn't answer my question on what that weapon was."

"All in due time Reinhard. We will explain everything. But please bring him to us. The council will owe you a favor for this," as most of the council nodded while a few looked on with displeasure.

Reinhard gave a short bow. "Very well, he is currently under the care at the Roswaal Manor and is recovering from battle I believe, should the council believe I should come see and give him the message personally?"

The council nodded in relief as Roswaal was one of the kingdom's most influencial figure and its greatest magician. The boy was going to be safe, they thought.

"Yes. Please. While you are their, please request that of our Kingdom's greatest magician, Roswaal L Mathers to treat him as an honored guest," the man said knowing the boy was in good hands.

A servant presented Reinhard with a letter stamped with the seal of the Sage council addressed to Roswaal L Mathers.

Reinhard took the letter and gave his farewells and departed.

* * *

'This Subaru seems more important than he seemed at first,' he thought as he made his way back to his mansion.

He arrived to see Felt enjoying herself but glaring at the nobles nearby. She clearly had a discontempt for them.

"Lady Felt, I'm afraid I will have to be leaving for a few days for some official duties. Please wait for me meanwhile so that I can explain my actions later on," as Reinhard turned and left, knowing she was in good hands as well.

"You better you jerk! Kidnapping a girl like me off the streets! You got some nerve!" as she stuffed her face with another cookie.

Reinhard simply smiled back as he departed.

Reinhard took one of his Family's personal Dragon Carriages and sped off to Roswaal Manor. Normally a trip was going to be nearly a day from the Capitol, but luckily for him, he had a special breed of ground dragons to help cut his trip nearly down to ½ the time. Not to mention his blessing that allowed for even greater speed when riding mounts.

Reinhard finally sped away on the carriage.

* * *

 _Eleven hours later:_

After a somewhat boring journey, he had finally arrived to the luxurious property that was Roswaal Manor.

He disembarked from the Carriage and waited at the gate for someone to greet him.

A familiar pink-haired maid finally arrived a few minutes later. She opened the gate for him.

"What business does the Royal Knights have with Roswaal-Sama today?" she asked.

"I wish an audience with him," as he held the letter with the Sage Council seal.

The pink-haired maid nodded. "Follow me then," as she lead the Sword Saint into the Mansion.

The trip his personal office took about five minutes as she motioned for the knight to wait at the entrance.

She entered the office and closed the door behind her.

….

Moments later it re-opens and the maid holds it open for the knight.

Entering the huge office, he saw the very eccentric and famed man himself, Roswaal L Mathers.

"My oh my…. To be visited by the Sword saint himselllllllllllf," Roswaal said with his odd speech pattern.

"Please, for what do I owe the pleasure of having Reinhard Van Astrea himself come visit me for?"

Reinhard simply extended his hand showing the letter.

The pink-haired maid simply took it and handed it to her master.

Roswaal undid the seal and read its content. He smiled.

"I Roswaal L Mathers would be honored to host the Sage Council's guest of honor," he said with arms outstretched.

"I suppose they sent you here to assure his current condition I presume?" he asked.

Reinhard nodded. "Yes, he is a special guest at their request after all."

Reinhard bowed as he departed to see Subaru. The maid led him to the guest room where he saw the sleeping boy, twisting and turning in his sleep. He look rather bothered even though he was resting. Almost as if he was experiencing a nightmare.

Reinhard knew he couldn't do anything and that Subaru had to wake up himself. Another maid was in the room, except she was blue-haired.

'Twins,' he thought. He was surprised to see them holding onto Subaru's hands. As if they were trying their best to comfort him. The blue-haired maid seemed a little bothered by Subaru however. The other sister, not so much at all.

"Rem, this person is now considered an honored guest for the Sage council," the pink-haired maid informed her younger sister, emphasizing his importance.

The younger sister nodded back in response.

Reinhard looked out the window and saw the Half-elf spending time with her Spirit outside in the gardens. He decided to talk to her to learn more about the boy next to him.

"If you will excuse me," as he departed and headed towards the gardens.

* * *

"Lia… We have a visitor it seems," the spirit known as Puck announced when he sensed Reinhard's presence nearby.

"Reinhard?" Emilia said confused on why she was seeing the knight so soon.

Reinhard simply waved and smiled back.

"What brings you to come all the way over here from the Capitol?" she asked.

Reinhard began to explain the current situation as Emilia also exchanged her side of the story on how she met Subaru and all the good he has done for her.

"I guess he's more important now than I thought," Emilia said wondering who EXACTLY is Subaru at this point. She knew at heart that Subaru was a good person, but there was obviously something more to him.

Reinhard felt relieved knowing Subaru was a good person after all, even though he blessing allowed a form of mind reading to tell a person's personality. Hearing his deeds from another person only gives him comfort and better judgement.

"AAARRGGHHHH!" a scream was heard coming from the mansion. It sounded a lot like Subaru.

"Heh..heh… Guess he's awake now," Reinhard said now jogging towards the mansion to check up on him.

* * *

A minute later he arrived to Subaru's room much to his surprise.

"And that concludes my part of the story," as he ended his tale on what transpired in the last day and a half omitting some parts.

Subaru stroked his chin and sighed.

"Ah geez, seems like a whole bunch of trouble for me…"

"Is the sage council thingy that important?" he asked in which Reinhard nodded. Not everyone could get to personally meet them and become a guest of honor, especially with the royal candidacy coming up.

Subaru slid off the covers on the bed and planted his feet on the ground, getting up from the bed. He noticed he was dressed in only a robe and his under garments.

"Good to see that you can still stand up so quickly after being asleep for nearly two days," Reinhard said trying to lighten up the mood.

"Yeah, no kidding," Subaru admitted. He didn't feel too groggy at all. He felt more energized than anything. He had never felt anything like this.

"Honored Guest, please come this way to meet Roswaal-Sama. He would like to have a word with you," the pink-haired maid said beckoning Subaru to follow.

* * *

A few minutes later, the group of four made it to the Roswaal's office as the magician sat at his desk, as if he was expecting all of them.

"You must be Subaru-kun! I must first of all thank you for all that you have done for Emilia," the clown, as Subaru would describe, thanked him for.

"In recent events, I suppose you know your current situation with the Sage Council's request, do you not?" he asked in which Subaru nodded knowingly.

"Good, good theeeen. I humbly accept you into my Manor as an honored Guest. But before that, I would like to reward you for helping Emilia and possibly saving her life. So what will it be?"

Subaru thought hard. He honestly wanted to help and stay by Emilia's side but something else was urging him to pick a different path. He made a decision…

"To be frank, I know nothing of this land, so I wish to stay and learn more so that I can pick myself off from my feet."

Roswaal smiled at the request. "Really? That's all? Your sole wish is to stay learn more about this land? No insurmountable amount of wealth or a favor from the all-influential Magician Roswaal himself?"

Subaru nodded.

"Very well then," Roswaal said granting him his wish.

"Rem, Ram. When you are finished with today's duties, please begin to tutor this young man, shall you?"

They both bowed in acknowledgment of the request.

"Yes Roswaal-Sama," they both said.

"Now that's settled, please enjoy yourself for now, honored guest."

With that Subaru and Reinhard left Roswaal's office.

…

"Rem."

"Yes?"

"I'm putting you in charge of keeping an eye on our honored guest. Make sure he doesn't get himself into any trouble, understood?"

"Yes, Roswaal-Sama."

* * *

Subaru found his track suit and other clothes in his room, neatly folded and cleaned, with any other belongings such as some coins and his cell phone nearby. He quickly put them back on and discarded the robe he wore previously. He felt more comfortable now.

The two made their way to the gardens.

Reinhard spoke up. "So what do you feel about all of this?" he questioned.

Subaru sighed a bit. "I don't know honestly. I feel trouble a-brewin but I guess it won't be too bad."

Reinhard smiled. "That's good to know."

…

Reinhard felt that Subaru's future was something of great value and that somehow, he needed to be prepared for it. But then again… it was just a feeling.

The power resting inside Subaru had a lot of potential, but brought hidden dangers with it, he thought. He'd feel bad knowing he could've helped Subaru prepare for it when he had the opportunity.

"Since I'm here Subaru, how about I give you some pointers on how to fight with swords better?" he suggested.

Subaru's raised his eyebrows in question.

"I saw your fight with Elsa, Subaru. Might I add, you performed better than I expected," he praised Subaru.

Subaru sweatdropped as he knew he was the one of defense the entire fight. Elsa could've killed him eventually had Reinhard not come to the rescue like the amazing hero he is.

Subaru remembered. 'That's right.'

Subaru extended his hand out as a flash of swirling light began to engulf the area around him and it finally projected the weapon of his heart. The keyblade, _Oathkeeper_.

For such an amazing weapon, he felt as if he was an incompetent owner. He knew that more than anyone else as he remembered his fight with Elsa.

Reinhard sensed his distraught.

"Don't feel too bad about yourself Subaru. You will grow stronger, I believe in you after all," he smiled.

"You really are a nice guy Reinhard," Subaru admitted, picturing Reinhard as the most perfect guy in the world.

Subaru looked at the keyblade once more. This weapon is considered the representation of his heart. He had a vow to keep.

'To protect the ones he cares most for.'

...

 _'Fool...'_

He let the keyblade disappear.

"I guess I'll take you up on those lessons," said Subaru scratching his head.

Reinhard smiled. "Glad you taken me up on my offer."

Reinhard pulled out two wooden swords from his luggage inside the carriage nearby. He tossed one to Subaru who caught it surprisingly skillfully.

Subaru examined the worn wooden object. Once again, it felt like something inside him recognized this feeling.

Training.

Reinhard took a relaxed stance with sword in front of him to guard.

"Everyone who was trained by me showed remarkable advancement in their techniques, if I say so myself," Reinhard said as he knew he had a teaching blessing, maximizing the learning potential of people he trains. "Not to sound arrogant or anything, but please come at me with all you have."

Subaru nodded in understanding. This guy was a sword saint after all, best learn from the master he guessed.

Subaru took a relaxed stance as well with weapon arm raised above his side and other hand in front of him in guard position. This felt all too familiar to Subaru.

The next few hours comprised of Subaru swinging at and guarding against the ever easy going Reinhard as he also gave pointers to Subaru on his stances and types of guards and attacks.

They practiced until Subaru needed a water break due to exhaustion while Reinhard simply stood and smiled, his talent with the blade unmatched by anyone.

By now Subaru had went through six sessions with Reinhard and was surprisingly showing much more improvement than expected. He has surpassed Reinhard's expectations once more.

"C'MON SUBARU! LAND A HIT ALREADY! YOU'RE BORING ME!" a voice screamed in the distance.

Subaru turned to see it was Puck who screamed at the top of his lungs while Emilia flicked him in the forehead, scolding him for interrupting Subaru's training.

'Ah... I almost forgotten about Emilia,' he thought as he began to wave to her but received a whack to the head from Reinhard.

"Oww...ow…" Subaru winced.

"Subaru, you've forgotten lesson number one: Never take your eyes off the enemy," Reinhard said while smiling.

* * *

Out from the window, the blue-haired maid watched with some intent. She knew nothing of this Subaru character and can only go off from what Emilia had told her. But she will continue her duty to keep an eye on him as Roswaal instructed. She could not however dismiss the stench of darkness that lingers about him.


End file.
